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Two of the main criticisms aimed at homeschoolers, apart from the socialisation issue, are that of not having done many exams and thus being unfamiliar with how to approach exams, and working under time pressure to complete tasks. Universities in particular find this to be relevant with homeschooling students.

Thus, to combat this, I have entered my daughter, Princess (now 11 years old) in the Australian Mathematics Competition each year since grade 3 and also this last year the Australian History Competition and the Australian Geography Competition. I am always on the lookout for ways to help in this regard. Thus, I have compiled a list of Australian competitions for 2015. Please note – this list is not exhaustive. It was compiled after a brief time of googling various subjects.

2015 Question: “To what extent did Australians enlist in 1914 to defend the ‘Mother Country’?”

Students are to respond to the question using both the 2015 Simpson Prize Australian War Memorial Source Selection and their own research. It is expected that students will make effective use of a minimum of 3 of the sources. It is also expected that up to half of their response will make use of information drawn from their own knowledge and research.

Entries need to be submitted during semester 1

Essay word limit:1200-1500 words, not including supplementary information such as a contents page, references, bibliography and appendices.

Audio Visual Presentation word and time limit: No more than 10 minutes accompanied by a written explanation of up to 400 words.

State Prize winner: Fully paid Trip to Canberra and also to Turkey or the Western Front

Both primary and secondary students submit a project based on your own experimental data into the experiment, research or investigation category of your local STA Awards or you submit an invention with written support material into the invention or engineering category of your local STA Awards or successfully complete a science project in the Blue, Silver or Gold category of the CSIRO CREST Awards.

It is a competition for high school students in years 10 (Australia) and 11 (New Zealand) to learn about the brain and its functions, learn about neuroscience research, find out about careers in neuroscience and to dispel misconceptions about neurological and mental illnesses.

There are 4 Rounds to the Australia-New Zealand Brain Bee Challenge.

Round 1 is held during Brain Awareness Week. Students study the book “Neuroscience: Science of the Brain. An Introduction for Young Students” by The British Neuroscience Association (BNA) and European Dana Alliance for the Brain (EDAB). They then complete an on-line quiz to determine their knowledge and understanding of the structure and function of the brain.

The Writing Prompt – “Think about the things you worry about. What is one worry you’d like to throw away? What would you replace your worry with, and what would you—and possibly those around you— gain by not having that worry in your life?”